Be More Pollyanna
Essays & Ideas to Inspire Intentional Gladness
Written by Holly Terrill

If actor Ryan Hansen knew me, I bet he’d totally endorse my book: Be More Pollyanna!
*If you know Ryan Hansen, contact me! I’d love to visit with him about endorsing my work of creative nonfiction.
Be More Pollyanna; Essays & Ideas to Inspire Intentional Gladness is a work of creative nonfiction that Holly began writing in the spring of 2023. Holly has authored more than twenty contact center leadership articles since the summer of 2020 and was ready to take the next step: to write a book that had the ability to positively impact others. Be More Pollyanna is that book.
Keep coming back; updates on the book will be posted to this page.
Books I’ve Read
If you are in need of ideas, here are lists of the books I’ve read for inspiration and leisure.
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Start with Why by Simon Sinek
Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice
A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas
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A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas
Heat Wave by Richard Castle
The Forest Ranger by Herbert Kaufman
Doctor Who: The Five Doctors by Terrance Dicks
Doctor Who: Twice Upon a Time by Paul Cornell
Forever and a Day by Anthony Horowitz
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
Loki by Katherine Locke
Veronica Mars: The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas
Shada by Douglas Adams
Doctor Who: Scratchman by Tom Baker
Constituent Service by John Scalzi
The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop
Good to Great and the Social Sector by Jim Collins
Doctor Who and the Krikkitmen by James Goss
Doctor Who: The Christmas Invasion by Jenny T. Colgan
Doctor Who: The Angel’s Kiss by Justin Richards
Doctor Who: The Pirate Planet by James Goss
Doctor Who: The Roby’s Curse by Alex Kingston
Doctor Who: Rose by Russell T. Davies
Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor by Steven Moffat
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Save The Cat! Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody
Once More With Feeling by Elissa Sussman
Still Just a Geek by Wil Wheaton
Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore
Unstuck: A Tool for Yourself, Your Team, and Your World by Keith Yamashita & Sandra Spatano
The Making of Another Major Motion Picture Masterpiece by Tom Hanks
Rebel Rising by Rebel Wilson
The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle
A Whole New World by Liz Braswell
Black Women of the Civil Rights Movement by Dr. Wendi Manuel-Scott
Bone Handbook by Jeff Smith
The Motive: Why So Many Leaders Abdicate Their Most Important Responsibilities by Patrick Lencioni
The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon
Fox 8 by George Saunders
His Dark Materials: Serpentine by Phillip Pullman
The Speed of Trust by Stephen M.R. Covey
Legal Immigrant by Alan Cumming
Approval Junkie by Faith Sallie
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Spy Island by Chelsea Cain
The Sign of Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
A Study in Scalett by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Bird King, an artist’s notebook by Shaun Tan
I Can’t Make This Up by Kevin Hart
American Like Me by America Ferrera
If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face? by Alan Alda
The Time of My Life by Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi
The Path Made Clear by Oprah Winfrey
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Bill & Ted Are Doomed by Ed Solomon and Evan Dorkin
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
If You Would Have Told Me by John Stamos
Read Something Else: Collected & Dubious Wit by Lemony Snicket
Better Than The Movies by Lynn Painter
Beastie Boys Book by Ad-Rock, Adam Horovitz, and Mike D
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson
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Zombiefied: Real-World Lessons from Fictional Apocalypses by Athena Aktipis
Loki: Where Mischief Lies by Mackenzi Lee
Being Henry: The Fonz…and Beyond by Henry Winkler
Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You by Sam Gosling
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear
JumpStart Your Priorities: A 90-Day Improvement Plan by John C. Maxwell
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Unf*ck Your Brain: Using Science to Get Over Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Freak-Outs, and Triggers by Faith G. Harper
It’s Not What It Looks Like by Molly Burke
Alanis Morisette by Alanis Morisette
Dear Life by Beck
Size Matters Not by Warwick Davis
Third Eye by Felicia Day
Slayers, A Buffyverse Story by Christopher Golden and Amber Benson
Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
Be Useful by Arnold Schwarzenegger
Cycle of the Werewolf by Stephen King
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry
Travel by Bullet by John Scalzi
Murder By Other Means by John Scalzi
The Dispatcher by John Scalzi
Starter Villain by John Scalzi
The Longevity Book: The Science of Aging, the Biology of Strength, and the Privilege of Time by Cameron Diaz and Sandra Bark
The Amityville Horror by Jay Anson
The Big Lebowski and Philosophy edited by Peter S. Fosl
The Incomplete Dudeist Priest’s Handbook by Gary M. Silvia
The Creative Act by Rick Rubin
Show Your Work! 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered by Austin Kleon
The Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics by Norton Juster
Keep Curious and Carry a Banana: Words of Wisdom from the World of Curious George by H.A. Rey
Little Book Of Wombat Wisdom by Harper Collins Publishers Australia
Be Angry by His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama
Big Damn Hero by James Lovegrove and Nancy Holder
A Pocket Guide to Sustainable Food Shopping: How to Navigate the Grocery Store, Read Labels, and Help Save the Planet by Kate Bratskeir
The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff
Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne, Translated by Lowell Bair
Spy of the First Person by Sam Shepard
Hello, Fears: Crush your Comfort Zone and Become Who You’re Meant to Be by Michelle Poler
Where to Begin: A Small Book About Your Power to Create Big Change in Our Crazy World by Cleo Wade
Happiness: Essential Mindfulness Practices by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune
Pageboy by Elliot Page
This is What I Know About Art by Kimberly Drew
Did I Ever Tell You This? by Sam Neill
Dracula by Bram Stoker
The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune
Principles for Success by Ray Dalio
Navigate Your Stars by Jesmyn Ward
All I Know About Management I Learned from My Dog: The Real Story of Angel, a Rescued Golden Retriever, Who Inspired the New Four Golden Rules of Management by Martin P. Levin
The Theatre of War: What Ancient Greek Tragedies Can Teach Us Today by Bryan Doerries
Read This if You Want to Be a Great Writer by Ross Raisin
Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre by Max Brooks
The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown
On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King
The New Queer Conscience by Adam Eli
Pep Talks for Writers: 52 Insights and Actions to Boost Your Creative Mojo by Grant Faulkner
Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter
The Salvage Crew by Yudhanjaya Wijeratne
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
This Will Only Hurt a Little by Busy Phillips
Spare by Prince Harry
Bartleby the Scrivener by Herman Melville
How to American: An Immigrant’s Guide to Disappointing Your Parents by Jimmy O. Yang
We Are Called to Be a Movement by William J. Barber II
Anti-Racist Leadership: How to Transform Corporate Culture in a Race-Conscious World by James D. White